Telltale Games

04/22/2006, 05:32 am

I don't know, somehow I feel that selling normal shareware games on the Telltale page makes the page feel.. "cheaper" somehow.
Especially since that Telltale Arcade is just some kind of frontend for Reflexive Arcade (www.reflexive.com).

It bugs me to see those ads for shareware games every time I visit this page.. most shareware stuff is just endless clones of puzzle games and stuff like that.. not worth the asking price by far.

But oh well.. if they'll make money this way so that they can improve future versions of Bone, I guess the little annoyance is worth it

04/22/2006, 11:20 pm

It's kind of bizarre that there's a Texas Holdem game on there for $19.95

I don't think it's sending out a very good message about the quality of their own version.

Udvarnoky · 04/22/2006, 11:23 pm

Only if you always associate quality with price.

04/22/2006, 11:34 pm

Well, if I came across some arbitrary game company site selling "X" Texas Holdem for 19.95 and "Y" Texas Holdem for 12.99, I don't think I could help but be a little prejudiced.

In any case, I stick by my original statement that it's "kind of bizarre."

Udvarnoky · 04/22/2006, 11:41 pm

Well seeing as I like money I prefer to test games out before assuming the more expensive one is better and just forking over the dough, and downloading the demo of Telltale Texas Hold'em would tell me whether or not it is the better game.

Anyway the Telltale Arcade doesn't get much notice from me. I suspect its existence has to do with a deal that was made than anything else. And if it gives Telltale money, well, fine.

04/23/2006, 12:39 am

It's pretty obvious this is a deal they have with Reflexive Arcade. Just check the link when download a game

I wonder if it gives you the Reflexive wrapper too.. I should try.

Edit - no point in trying, it just links you to theri page when you try to download a game so it must be the Reflexive wrapper these games use.

Reflexive probably pays Telltale a percentage of the money they get from the games in order for Telltale to feature them on this site.

Emily · 04/23/2006, 12:54 am

The arcade isn't there just to make money for Telltale (although it's true that if you buy a game through the arcade, Telltale gets some of that). Telltale ultimately wants to offer all sorts of quality content, sort of like programming on a TV channel. Of course, it takes a bit of time for us to develop our own content, and adding the arcade to the site was one way to add content in the meantime.

That said, the way it's set up right now is a little haphazard (and I completely agree that it's weird to have a competing version of Texas Hold'Em on the site!) This brings up a good question... what kind of content would you like to see in the arcade? Are there specific games (casual or otherwise) that you've played and you think would be a good fit for as "programming" for a Telltale channel?

jp-30 · 04/23/2006, 02:08 am

I have to admit that the Telltale Arcade does bug me too. I figured part of the deal was that Telltale Games would eventually be offered on other sites carrying the same Reflexive service.

Considering the style of games Telltale is making is what brings me here, buying little puzzle games holds no appeal to me whatsoever. As far as casual games go, you can find some very good free ones across the net with minimal effort.

What I'd like to see as extra content on telltalegames.com are minigames that you might find in an adventure, perhaps as a teaser for Sam & Max, the next Bone, or better yet, utilising ~~DanC~~ Dank the Caveman or Ted Dudebrough. These could also double as tech demos or be reutilised craftily in your episodic adventures.

There was an animation of a dancing contest in the LucasArts Sam & Max game. That kind of thing, standalone, would be awesome - especially if that minigame did not appear in that form in the final episode.

It could also act as viral marketing for the Sam & Max episode if the file was small enough and able to be redistributed. Kinda like those virtual trading cards you had for the first Bone, but more 'fun'...

There is a short Sam & Max (flash?) animation with an alien and a brain transplant floating around the web too. That kind of non-interactive thing could be 'traded' or bought too to spread the word. Or you could 'film' a cutscene-type sequence made in your game engine and have that available for download as an animated short.

Ideally they'd be free, or if not used as a viral marketing tool cost $2.50 to download or something. If you're using the TV Channel analogy, then these would be the adverts - but the sort of adverts people like to watch.

04/30/2006, 02:15 am

I'm just wondering - since you sell Reflexive arcade games on the Telltale page under the Telltale arcade pseudonym, do you also give technical support for these games? Or do you give some kind of warning that you don't have anything to do with these games?

Also, I find it very weird that people buy those games.. $20 is robbery for a tiny little (often amateurish) game like that.
People sometimes say that it's the amount of entertainment they get out of a game that matters when it comes to the price, but I disagree.
If that was the case, then a pen and paper should also be $20 since people that enjoy drawing can spend lots of hours doing that.

Emily · 04/30/2006, 04:41 am

No, we don't offer tech support for them, just as we would not expect a portal to offer tech support on a Bone game. (How would they even know where to start?)

As for the price, that isn't set by us, and it's consistent with the prices charged by other casual gaming portals. There is a huge (and growing) industry of people who have no problem paying $20 for this type of game.

04/30/2006, 04:32 pm

I know there are plenty of people that are more than willing to be ripped off by these prices and it really puzzles me.
I know the prices aren't your fault of course, these games are $20 on all pages.

05/01/2006, 02:36 am

yeah the arcade doesn't excite me.. $20 for the kind of games they are offering gets no interest from me.. I'd hope telltale would be offering a little more quality in games they are offering on their own web site.. its like the google adds..for a company to be having google adds takes a little away from the site.. if it makes em money fair enough.. but if it isn't making them that much.. I'd rather not see them on the site...

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04/22/2006, 05:32 am	#1
laffer Guest Posts: n/a	I don't know, somehow I feel that selling normal shareware games on the Telltale page makes the page feel.. "cheaper" somehow. Especially since that Telltale Arcade is just some kind of frontend for Reflexive Arcade (www.reflexive.com). It bugs me to see those ads for shareware games every time I visit this page.. most shareware stuff is just endless clones of puzzle games and stuff like that.. not worth the asking price by far. But oh well.. if they'll make money this way so that they can improve future versions of Bone, I guess the little annoyance is worth it

04/22/2006, 11:20 pm	#2
cp31734 Guest Posts: n/a	It's kind of bizarre that there's a Texas Holdem game on there for $19.95 I don't think it's sending out a very good message about the quality of their own version.

04/22/2006, 11:23 pm	#3
Udvarnoky Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Thibodaux, LA Posts: 855	Only if you always associate quality with price.

04/22/2006, 11:34 pm	#4
cp31734 Guest Posts: n/a	Well, if I came across some arbitrary game company site selling "X" Texas Holdem for 19.95 and "Y" Texas Holdem for 12.99, I don't think I could help but be a little prejudiced. In any case, I stick by my original statement that it's "kind of bizarre."

04/22/2006, 11:41 pm	#5
Udvarnoky Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Thibodaux, LA Posts: 855	Well seeing as I like money I prefer to test games out before assuming the more expensive one is better and just forking over the dough, and downloading the demo of Telltale Texas Hold'em would tell me whether or not it is the better game. Anyway the Telltale Arcade doesn't get much notice from me. I suspect its existence has to do with a deal that was made than anything else. And if it gives Telltale money, well, fine.

04/23/2006, 12:39 am	#6
laffer Guest Posts: n/a	It's pretty obvious this is a deal they have with Reflexive Arcade. Just check the link when download a game I wonder if it gives you the Reflexive wrapper too.. I should try. Edit - no point in trying, it just links you to theri page when you try to download a game so it must be the Reflexive wrapper these games use. Reflexive probably pays Telltale a percentage of the money they get from the games in order for Telltale to feature them on this site.

04/23/2006, 12:54 am	#7
Emily Formerly of the Telltale Team Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: San Francisco Posts: 4,549	The arcade isn't there just to make money for Telltale (although it's true that if you buy a game through the arcade, Telltale gets some of that). Telltale ultimately wants to offer all sorts of quality content, sort of like programming on a TV channel. Of course, it takes a bit of time for us to develop our own content, and adding the arcade to the site was one way to add content in the meantime. That said, the way it's set up right now is a little haphazard (and I completely agree that it's weird to have a competing version of Texas Hold'Em on the site!) This brings up a good question... what kind of content would you like to see in the arcade? Are there specific games (casual or otherwise) that you've played and you think would be a good fit for as "programming" for a Telltale channel?

04/23/2006, 02:08 am	#8
jp-30 Lint Miner Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: New Zealand. Posts: 2,735	I have to admit that the Telltale Arcade does bug me too. I figured part of the deal was that Telltale Games would eventually be offered on other sites carrying the same Reflexive service. Considering the style of games Telltale is making is what brings me here, buying little puzzle games holds no appeal to me whatsoever. As far as casual games go, you can find some very good free ones across the net with minimal effort. What I'd like to see as extra content on telltalegames.com are minigames that you might find in an adventure, perhaps as a teaser for Sam & Max, the next Bone, or better yet, utilising ~~DanC~~ Dank the Caveman or Ted Dudebrough. These could also double as tech demos or be reutilised craftily in your episodic adventures. There was an animation of a dancing contest in the LucasArts Sam & Max game. That kind of thing, standalone, would be awesome - especially if that minigame did not appear in that form in the final episode. It could also act as viral marketing for the Sam & Max episode if the file was small enough and able to be redistributed. Kinda like those virtual trading cards you had for the first Bone, but more 'fun'... There is a short Sam & Max (flash?) animation with an alien and a brain transplant floating around the web too. That kind of non-interactive thing could be 'traded' or bought too to spread the word. Or you could 'film' a cutscene-type sequence made in your game engine and have that available for download as an animated short. Ideally they'd be free, or if not used as a viral marketing tool cost $2.50 to download or something. If you're using the TV Channel analogy, then these would be the adverts - but the sort of adverts people like to watch.

04/30/2006, 02:15 am	#9
laffer Guest Posts: n/a	I'm just wondering - since you sell Reflexive arcade games on the Telltale page under the Telltale arcade pseudonym, do you also give technical support for these games? Or do you give some kind of warning that you don't have anything to do with these games? Also, I find it very weird that people buy those games.. $20 is robbery for a tiny little (often amateurish) game like that. People sometimes say that it's the amount of entertainment they get out of a game that matters when it comes to the price, but I disagree. If that was the case, then a pen and paper should also be $20 since people that enjoy drawing can spend lots of hours doing that.

04/30/2006, 04:41 am	#10
Emily Formerly of the Telltale Team Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: San Francisco Posts: 4,549	No, we don't offer tech support for them, just as we would not expect a portal to offer tech support on a Bone game. (How would they even know where to start?) As for the price, that isn't set by us, and it's consistent with the prices charged by other casual gaming portals. There is a huge (and growing) industry of people who have no problem paying $20 for this type of game.

04/30/2006, 04:32 pm	#11
laffer Guest Posts: n/a	I know there are plenty of people that are more than willing to be ripped off by these prices and it really puzzles me. I know the prices aren't your fault of course, these games are $20 on all pages.

05/01/2006, 02:36 am	#12
HieroHero Guest Posts: n/a	yeah the arcade doesn't excite me.. $20 for the kind of games they are offering gets no interest from me.. I'd hope telltale would be offering a little more quality in games they are offering on their own web site.. its like the google adds..for a company to be having google adds takes a little away from the site.. if it makes em money fair enough.. but if it isn't making them that much.. I'd rather not see them on the site...